Making a Course Correction

Last week we started a series called, “The Path,” in which we said that there is an unbreakable principle in the universe that if you try to break, it will break you. It’s the principle of The Path, which says Your direction determines your destination.

We went a little further and said it really doesn’t matter what you hoped would happen for you / or what you wanted to have happen to you / It doesn’t matter how smart / good-looking / rich you are / if you get on the road heading north, you will eventually end up in Canada

On this principle is the hinge on which everything we’re going to learn today swings

The first 17 books of OT are historical books. They tell the history of the people of Israel and God’s preparation for the coming of his Son.

The next 5 books are poetical books. They teach us the wisdom of Israel.

Job answers the question, “Why is there so much pain in this life, and how do I deal with it?”

Psalms point heavenward and teaches us how to walk with God

Proverbs are aimed earthward and teach us to walk with people

Ecclesiastes is wisdom on the nature of life

And Song of Songs is an ode to romantic love

The final 17 books of the Bible are prophetic books / Today we are focusing on Proverbs

Proverbs 27:12 The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

I. Book of Proverbs (keep it open through my first point)

Proverbs 1:1–4 (NIV) The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight; for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and just and fair; for giving prudence to those who are simple, knowledge and discretion to the young—

A. WoW! Who doesn’t want that?

1. God intended the composition of this book / so that we could become wise / so that we would know how to live life well

a. In this section / which is known as the Prologue to the book of Proverbs / a word appears twice that we don’t use very often

b. It’s a great word / because if you can master the skill it implies / your life will work much better

i. See if you can find the word that appears twice / though in two slightly different forms

3 for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair; 4 for giving prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the young-

2. The word is “Prudent” / or its adjective form / “prudence”

a. To be prudent means “to KNOWING what to do” / “EXERCISING good judgment,” / or “having COMMON sense”

i. We don’t use this word very much but the book of Proverbs uses it a lot

ii. In fact Solomon compares and contrasts prudent people with a second kind of people

3. “Simple people” Whatever you are / you don’t want to be a simple person

a. Proverbs 19:25 Flog a mocker, and the simple will learn prudence; rebuke the discerning, and they will gain knowledge.

i. In other words / some people learn by verbal instruction: A friend points out something they’re doing wrong, and they learn from it.

ii. Other people, “simple people,” have to be whipped or beaten to learn a lesson

b. In another place / Proverbs 12:16 Fools show their annoyance at once, but the prudent overlook an insult.

i. Simple people let their emotions get the best of them / The simple get mad and go into a rage

Story from few weeks ago / Just after 6 pm / a Dodge Ram and a Nissan Murano were driving Northbound on US 1 from the Jacksonville area in what one witness described as a “cat and mouse game,” / Both vehicles were driving erratically / speeding and brake-checking each other /

The driver of the Ram truck pulled beside the Murano and started shouting at the driver through the passenger window / A passenger in the Murano then flipped off other driver / The Murano driver rolled down his window to shout at the other driver when a plastic water bottle was thrown into the Murano by someone in the Dodge Ram.

Then a shot was fired at the Ram with a .45 caliber handgun as Murano drove away / Driver thought it hit the bed of his truck / but then he heard his daughter screaming / His 5-year-old daughter was shot in the leg / Realizing his daughter had been shot, he fired at the back of the Murano several times / striking a 14-year-old passenger in the back seat and causing a collapsed lung

a. Great example of what WOG would call simple

ii. The simple spout off and complain when things don’t go their way / but prudent people know how to control themselves / take things in stride

B. A FEW MORE PROVERBS

1. Proverbs 14:15 The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps.

a. Simple people get fooled easily / Prudent people use their brains / Can you imagine if we all mastered prudence? Life would be a lot easier!

2. Proverbs 22:3 The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

a. LET’S READ that one out loud / how often / people are on wrong path / simply keep on going / problem is.... there comes with it / a penalty

i. It’s the exact same proverb, just recorded in two different places / Why would God do that?

ii. Why would this proverb be recorded twice? I don’t know for certain / But here’s what I think

iii. God put Proverbs in the Bible to make us smarter at living life / God put this Proverb in the Bible twice because he thinks it’s doubly important that we learn its lesson

b. Simple people need to be flogged to learn lessons / while prudent people just need a word

i. So let me give you some words simple words of wisdom

a. Prov 27:12 The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

Alright, here’s where the serious learning begins...

II. HOW DO YOU FIGURE OUT WHAT PATH TO GET OFF?

If the path we are on takes us somewhere / how do we choose right path? What path should we be on? Which one(s) should we get off?

This proverb is telling us …

A. The primary difference between the prudent and the simple is …It’s not what you see / but how you respond to what you see

1. The prudent see danger and take refuge / The simple see danger and keep going

a. Both of them SEE danger / One responds by changing course / the other keeps going / hoping that the danger will never arrive

It’s like the ostrich who buries his head in the sand: “If I can’t see it, it can’t see me.

i. If I ignore what I know is out there, it can’t hurt me.”

ii. You can see why Solomon calls people like this “simple.”

So how do you choose the right path?

B. The prudent make course corrections.

On Labor Day I read of several people who did an annual Pier Swim / where you swim out and around the Pier and back. One swimmer would swim 10 or 12 strokes, and then lift his head to make sure he was heading towards the buoy / He said Several times during the race, he looked over and saw someone swimming like 20 yards off course, and he’d think to himself, “That guy is not prudent. He’s simple because he’s not making course corrections as he goes

1. It’s a little more complicated than that in life / But part of choosing the right path begins with getting off the wrong path

Saying, “This behavior, this habit, this relationship, this… you name it, is leading me somewhere that’s going to hurt, so I’m going to get off of this path and get on a better one.”

Problem is / Unlike the prudent…

C. The simple keep right on going

- When a prudent person senses that a relationship is moving in an unhealthy direction, they do something. The simple keep going.

- When a prudent person sees trouble on their financial horizon / they do something / The simple keep spending

- When a prudent person realizes that God is the most important person in the universe / and see their relationship with him isn’t growing, they do something about it / The simple keep doing whatever they were doing that took their time away from God.

1. Just so we’re clear, the second half of the proverb says, “the simple keep going and pay the penalty.”

2. The penalty for what? – For refusing to act on what they see

a. They pay the penalty because they see no connection between the choices of today / the experiences of tomorrow

b. They overlook the fact that every path has a destination

Some time ago / David Letterman announced that he had been misbehaving with certain female members of his staff. USA Today quoted him as saying, “I’m terribly sorry that I put the staff in that position. Inadvertently, I just wasn’t thinking ahead.”

c. Hear that?

i. Some might say David Letterman is about as funny as anyone on this planet / but would you call him prudent?

He went on “My wife has been horribly hurt by my behavior, and when something happens like that, you try to fix it…. Let me tell you, folks, I’ve got my work cut out for me.”

3. Here’s the really sad part about not making course corrections:

a. Not only does the simple person himself pay a penalty / often times a lot of people around him pay a penalty too

i. Their spouse / the children / co-workers / family

The following scenario describes how the simple react to problems…

“Oh, you know, that’s probably going to be a problem. I really ought to…” “Are you going to do something about it?”

“No. I’m just probably gonna keep going.” “But don’t you see?...” “Yeah.” “Shouldn’t you do something about it?”

“Yeah, I should. You’re right. You’re right. I should.” “What are you going to do?” “Nothing. Just keep going.”

“Well, don’t you see…” “Yeah, I probably should stop that. I should. I’m not arguing with you.”

“What are you going to do?” “Just keep going.”

b. Even though most would not admit out loud / in words / it’s exactly what we do

i. The simple think I’m going to drive toward the wall / but when I get there / I won’t hit the wall

ii. Somehow when they get to the end of the road of bad decisions it will somehow work out / REALLY!?

iii. Like energizer bunny / The simple just… keep… going…

4. Most people would hate to be called simple... But....

a. Whether you’re 30 years old / 50 years / or 15 / If you see a problem in the future because of your direction / you need to get off that path…. If you don’t, you are “simple.”

5. Scenarios

A parent notices that their child tends to talk back / lose their temper / As they grow a little older / they do the same thing to their teacher / coaches / The parent thinks “When they grow up, this could be a problem.” A concerned grandparent even says, “I’m worried about that.” Mom says, “Yeah, me too.” But figuring out how to teach their child how to submit and take direction is too painful. So they don’t do anything / They hope that by luck and unanticipated circumstances, their little hothead will grow out of his or her temper and hissy fits / But that child grows up to go from job to job to job because he or she can’t control their mouth / so they keep getting fired.

A 30-something knows that he’s gaining a little weight / but hey, that’s what happens in your 30’s, doesn’t it? / Your metabolism slows down, but your appetite doesn’t / So a friend says, “When you’re 40, this could be a problem.” / When they turn 40, it is a problem / At 46 / after their first coronary (heart attack), they decide to figure out how to exercise and eat right. But by then, the damage has already been done

A couple thinks, “We really need to get on a budget / We need to figure out where our money is going so we can give to God and have some leftover to help others / When we retire, we need some leftover to help ourselves too.” But then the bling / fast food / catches their eyes / And besides... budgeting is so mundane. So they drive toward the wall hoping that something miraculous will happen just before they hit.

Parents see their children having no affection for things of God / constantly prioritize other things above church / KOG / never make a change / hope they somehow get it

So how do you choose the right path? Here’s the key. Are you ready for this?

D. Prudent people know that it’s not what they see that makes a difference, it’s what they do.

A. They do things!

III. Making Course Corrections

A. How do you make a course correction? You do something.

1. You take action / You step off a path and get on another one

a. This is almost always hard because we are creatures of habit / creatures of momentum

b. We naturally continue to do what we’re used to doing / If we’re used to overeating, overeating feels natural to us.

c. If we’re used to losing our temper / or running our mouth / losing our temper is natural to us

d. If we’re used to online forums or indiscrete pictures/relationships / that’s what we’re used to. Momentum carries us in the same direction, so to change directions means…

B. You almost always give up something

Here’s a corollary to what I’m saying: When you see danger, it almost always requires sacrifice, which is why we don’t do it

1. And this is where it gets ironic / When prudent people act / they often look foolish

a. They do things that others aren’t doing; they swim against the stream.

i. When everyone else is planning vacations / buying RV’s / they opt out / camp in their back yard

b. They act as if then is now / change course before the wall ever hits them / or they ever hit the wall

C. When you behave prudently / You usually suffer embarrassment

1. Because nobody else is doing it

Remember when the voices crying out / “Save! Don’t spend everything! Save some!” / Many are predicting another recession / if that happens / what will you do? Research shows most people don’t have any savings / or less than one month’s expenditures

D. Being Prudent / You will someday breathe a sigh of relief

1. Want to know what is funny about this proverb / it’s a story most of us heard from our moms when we were kids

a. Ever hear of The Three Little Pigs?

You remember the story: One builds his house out of straw; one builds his house out of sticks. When the big bad wolf comes along, he huffs, and he puffs, and he blows their houses down.

i. Solomon would call those two “simple pigs.”

The third little pig was a prudent pig / He built a house out of bricks / Why? Because he saw danger coming and built a refuge!

2. We all know that life is going to bring us challenges, don’t we? / When have been through economic downturns / last few years we have seen incredible growth / now inflation / but eventually / there will be another downturn

a. Prudent people plan for it

3. If you’re married / some type of challenge will stretch / strain your relationship at some point.

a. Prudent people know that / so they don’t take their marriages for granted / They work on them in the good times

i. So they have more strength to weather the bad times

4. Years ago, I decided that I’d hit enough walls / so I decided I was going to start taking action as long before the crisis came as I could / Decided I don’t want to hit any more walls

a. So I figured it out... I may not be able to monitor every aspect of my life, but the top five areas to monitor are:

i. Spiritual / Relational / Moral / Financial / Physical

ii. I think they’re in that order too

iii. The most important being in the world is God / The most important thing on earth is relationships / Nobody gets to their deathbed wishing they had more money / They might wish they had a better body / so they could have lived longer / they might wish they’d lived better morally so people would think better of them /

iv. Almost everyone on their deathbed wishes they had more time with family and friends / and EVERYONE on their deathbed wants to be right with God

v. So these are the paths I monitor / so should you

5. Imagine if all of us in this room loved God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, like the Bible says he wants us to?

a. Imagine how great a place this would be as we were becoming more and more like God in character

i. Our church would be a little reflection of heaven / which it’s pretty close to being!

ii. If we loved God enough / we’d actually spill our influence over into the community / which we are doing better and better every year!

iii. Imagine if your reputation, your morals, and what people thought of you was exactly what you’d like them to think of you?

One guy said, “My goal in life is to become the man my dog thinks I am.”

6. Imagine a life without hitting more walls / That would be the good life, wouldn’t it?

a. Then let’s not waste another minute on a path that leads somewhere you don’t want to go

b. Let’s take some time this week to reflect and redirect.

i. The prudent see danger and take refuge.

ii. They get off the wrong path and get on the right path

iii. They make course corrections... They don’t just think about it or worry about it—they do it